Meet Our Team

Jerome Davis
Executive Vice President of the Chamber and President of Leadership Foundation
jerome.davis@denverleadership.org
303-620-8024

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Jerome Davis was named Executive Vice President of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce and President of the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation in March 2022. He is a former regional vice president of Xcel Energy – Colorado.

Jerome is well-known in the Metro Denver community for his civic leadership, wisdom and vision. Before retiring from Xcel Energy in 2020, he created the company’s Day of Service. Since the first Day of Service in 2011, more than 26,000 volunteers have contributed over 77,000 hours of volunteer work.

Jerome, who was born and raised in Denver, has long been active in the community, serving on the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation Executive Committee, as well as on the boards of Visit Denver, Colorado Health Foundation, Canvas Credit Union, Aurora Economic Development Council and the Denver Chapter of the American Association of Blacks in Energy.

Jerome is also very familiar with B:CIVIC and the Leadership Foundation and its programs, having served on the Leadership Foundation Board for six years from 2004 to 2010. He was also named the 2020 9NEWS Leader of the Year.

Davis is a Colorado native, and resides in Aurora with his wife Jackie, and two children, Jasmine and Jordan.

Our Staff — Operations

Nikki Barta
Executive Assistant
nikki.barta@denverleadership.org
303-620-8024

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Born and raised in Denver, Nikki Barta is the executive assistant of the Leadership Foundation.  She takes on her ever-changing role with a smile and a double-jointed thumbs-up.  When she’s not taking care of our team or our board up here on the 5th Floor, you can find her enjoying Colorado’s great outdoors with her (adorable) kiddos or sitting on a patio enjoying a glass of pinot. She also likes to get her Pinterest-inspired crafting on and cooking vegan-ish meals for her family.

Our Staff — Programs

Jenna Diaz-Gonzalez
Program Director
 Jenna.Diaz-Gonzalez@denverleadership.org
303-620-8073

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Jenna Diaz-Gonzalez is a social impact leader dedicated to ensuring all communities thrive through leadership development, philanthropy and nonprofit capacity building. As Program Director at the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation, Jenna oversees the suite of leadership programming, including Impact Denver and the Leadership Exchange. She’s passionate about creating spaces where leaders feel that they belong, are supported, and are equipped with the resources they need to be social change agents.

Over the past 11 years, Jenna has held positions in grants management, programs and communications across grantmaking foundations in New York, Arizona and California. Prior to joining the Leadership Foundation, she worked for the Annenberg Foundation, Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust, Getty Foundation and Southern California Grantmakers. During her volunteer tenure as Co-Chair of Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy Los Angeles (EPIP LA), Jenna oversaw the development and engagement of purposeful leaders in philanthropy to drive organizational and community change, chaired its Mentorship Program and co-designed the People of Color Los Angeles Network to strengthen solidarity within communities of color and deepen practices of liberation.

Jenna received her Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Arizona State University Barrett Honors College and her Master’s in Public Administration from University of Southern California. When she’s not working you can find her traveling the globe, hiking, or attending a local arts & culture event.

Kate Greeley
Program Director
kate.greeley@denverleadership.org
303-620-8055

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Kate brings over 20 years of experience in the education and leadership development spheres. Spending the last few years in various roles in K-12 education, she is looking forward to transitioning into this new adventure here at the Leadership Foundation. As Program Director, Kate is excited to lead our region’s premier leadership program, Leadership Denver – in which she is a proud 2015 graduate! Kate has lived in Denver for almost 30 years and loves spending time outdoors with her husband and two sons.

Jess Welser
Director of B:CIVIC and CSR
jessica.welser@bcivic.org
303-620-8085

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Jess serves as the Director of B:CIVIC and CSR for the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation. B:CIVIC elevates business for good by empowering organizations and their people to do more for their communities.

As part of B:CIVIC, she helps companies move the needle and increase capacity for their corporate social responsibility strategies. In this role, she engages more than 140 organizations in sharing expertise, corporate strategy and collaborative initiatives. Two notable initiatives include a Colorado CEO pledge against racism and the first statewide version of the Civic 50 Colorado.

Additionally, she manages stakeholder engagement, resource curation, marketing and event execution, including an annual conference. Through her leadership, the B:CIVIC Summit has become the largest full-day CSR conference in the Rocky Mountain Region. She also gives her time back to the community through service on the resource toolkit committee for Colorado Inclusive Economy and advisory board for Impact100 Metro Denver, among various other volunteer initiatives.

Before joining B:CIVIC, Jess served in a variety of community building roles in her home state of Iowa. She supported the revitalization of the city of Maquoketa through development and execution of community initiatives and communication strategies. Jess also managed marketing and communications for Active Endeavors, a family-owned outdoor apparel shop. Here she transformed the brand image to a community-focused organization and managed sponsorships.

Jess obtained a certificate in corporate social responsibility from the University of Colorado – Boulder, Leeds School of Business and a certificate in sustainable business strategy from Harvard Business School. She holds a BBA from the University of Iowa, with a focus on marketing and a sustainability certificate.

In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, camping, snowboarding, cooking, and exploring Colorado.

Matt Tebo
Manager, Alumni & Logistics, Leadership Foundation
Matt.Tebo@denverleadership.org

303.620.8078

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Coming soon.

Ana Ibañez
Program Support Specialist
ana.ibanez@denverleadership.org
303-620-8066

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Ana graduated with an emphasis in Human Development and Family Relations from the School of Education at the University of Colorado Denver. Prior to her undergrad years, she served as the first work-study admin assist at a non-profit organization that serves youth who have dropped out of school or are significantly behind in credits and unlikely to graduate – in which she is a proud 2012 graduate! In her undergraduate years, she worked for CUDenver’s Student Admissions office, and it was during her time with these organizations that she discovered her passion for serving her local communities and equipping future leaders. Some of her volunteering experiences include: serving in a student panel for Admission outreach, serving refugees at her 6 week internship in Seville, Spain and volunteering for Denver Leadership Foundations CLA’s mentors walk. She is a single class shy of obtaining a Master’s Certificate in Global Community Engagement through University College at University of Denver to which she will continue for a Master’s. In her spare time, Ana enjoys singing, painting, visiting art galleries, traveling the globe, reading and grabbing brunch with friends.

Olivia Barrows
B:CIVIC Impact & Operations Senior Specialist
olivia.barrows@bcivic.org
303-620-8109

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Olivia was born and raised in Western Colorado and is a recent graduate of the University of Denver with a Master’s in International Studies. She started traveling internationally at a young age and recognized the need for commitments to social responsibility. As an undergraduate at Pacific University, Olivia led several student organizations and further saw the importance of local solutions to big problems. Olivia most recently worked with the Denver Public Schools Foundation supporting corporate engagement. She is excited to continue using her background in diplomacy and project management to better the Denver community!